Washington farmers skeptical of stubble ethanol

MOSCOW, Idaho (AP)--Some alternative energy enthusiasts contend the straw that remains every fall after wheat is harvested on more than 1 million acres of Palouse topsoil could be converted to ethanol, but not all farmers are buying into the idea, The Moscow-Pullman Daily News reported.

Straw, switchgrass and corn stalks are the primary components used in cellulosic ethanol, which has been referred to as "green gold".

Paul Winters of the Washington D.C.-based Biotechnology Industry Organization said the biochemical process used in cellulosic ethanol production is similar to the way yeast is used to brew beer.

"There is a huge misconception that we are still five years away from developing this fuel," Winters said, according to the newspaper. "We have it now, today, and it works."

But not everyone is ready to embrace the concept.

Farmers currently use the stubble, or crop residue, as an integral part of their soil conservation process.

Farmer Lee Druffel of Colton, Wash., wants all the residue to remain in his fields to keep his soil from eroding and serve as a natural fertilizer, the newspaper reported. Druffel runs a direct-seed farming operation that leaves stubble standing in the field instead of tilling it into the ground.

"Modern residue is not a waste, it's an asset," he said. "I need it to continue my farm model to maintain soil conservation and soil health."

The science may be sound, but farmers won't be willing to commit just yet, Mike Mandere, director of the Farm Service Agency in Whitman County, Wash., told the newspaper.

Cellulosic ethanol is the latest in a long line of alternative industries introduced on the Palouse. Strawboard factories, straw-powered steam plants and biodiesel plants all have been proposed in the area over the last several years, and none has panned out.

Mandere said farmers have become numb to the idea of alternative crops and uses for their residue. Many farmers have adopted the attitude that unless a facility is up and running, it isn't a viable option.

U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Mike Johanns recently released his recommendation for the 2007 farm bill. In its current form, the bill would provide $1.6 billion in new funding for renewable energy from cellulosic ethanol. It includes $2.1 billion in guaranteed loans for cellulosic projects and $500 million for research, and the Palouse is being eyed as a potential launching point.

But it takes a lot more than money to make a plant viable.

Bruce Nave, president of Wi Biofuels, received a low-interest $6 million loan from Washington state to build a biofuel plant in the region. He scrapped his plans when he was unable to secure adequate infrastructure and get enough producers on board.

Michael Largent, a Dusty, Wash.-area farmer and Whitman County commissioner, understands the government's desire to get the cellulose industry up and running. But he doesn't want the industry to become dependent on federal money.

If it does, he told the newspaper, a shift in government thinking and funding could weaken the industry.

"If it can't stand on its own two economic feet it won't last," Largent said.

Seven percent to 10 percent of the farming acreage in the Palouse could be considered for residue removal, but the rest is needed to prevent erosion, said Dennis Roe of the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service.

Roe estimates that level ground could yield between one and two tons of straw per acre on an annual basis. Based on his estimates, the Palouse region could annually produce between 10 million and 12 million gallons of cellulosic ethanol if every grower participated.

In the meantime, Druffel said his mind is not closed to the idea of producing ethanol in the region, but his current operation is efficient enough to keep him from actively seeking alternatives.

"I'm not objecting to the idea," Druffel said, according to the newspaper "But from the point of an investor, I'll have to have more accomplishments than I see now."

1 Star WK

2/26/07

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Date: 2/22/07

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